


it's a fabulous life under the spotlight (you're so out of sight)

by MiraMeraki



Category: Winx Club
Genre: Character Study, Friendship, Gen, have a wholesome fanfic during these trying times, vignette-style
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-07-27
Updated: 2020-07-27
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:09:14
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25559347
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiraMeraki/pseuds/MiraMeraki
Summary: Before meeting Bloom, Stella had never been outshone by anyone. For a girl who adores the spotlight, being best friends with the most powerful fairy in the Magical Dimension isn’t easy, but by the end of their time at Alfea, she wouldn’t have things any other way.
Relationships: Bloom & Stella (Winx Club)
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	it's a fabulous life under the spotlight (you're so out of sight)

**Author's Note:**

> Welcome to part 2 of ‘rewatching my favorite childhood show while I desperately wait for Netflix to drop a Fate: The Winx Saga trailer, even though I’ll instantly hate it because it won’t have the same spark as the original series’ 😅 
> 
> Episodes included:  
> 1x02 More Than High School  
> 1x09 Spelled  
> 1x12 Miss Magix  
> 1x17 Royal Heartbreak  
> 1x21 The Frozen Palace
> 
> Feedback is always appreciated!

“So you really have no idea who I am.”

Bloom tore her eyes away from the shiny red hovercars tearing down the streets of Magix and looked to Stella with a puzzled frown. “Other than the fact you’re a fairy from a planet called Solaria and you enjoy picking fights with trolls? Nothing. Why? Should I know you from somewhere?”

“No, it’s just…” Stella fidgeted with her ring as she searched for the right words. “I’m not just a fairy from Solaria; I’m the _princess_ of Solaria.”

Bloom stumbled on a sidewalk crack and nearly dropped her pizza slice. “Oh shoot, that’s right,” she said, tripping over her words. “Sorry, was I supposed to bow when you passed me my plate? I didn’t notice any of the other girls doing that, but I wasn’t really paying attention. I’m really sorry, I completely forgot you mentioned that—”

“You _forgot_?” Stella echoed in disbelief.

Bloom nodded meekly. “In my defense, yesterday was a _lot_ to process.”

Stella glanced over her shoulder at the rest of their suitemates, still gathered around the pizza vendor debating toppings, and shook her head. She was reacting like an idiot. Of course a random Earth fairy wouldn’t have seen her name and face plastered on every royal gossip show in the realm. She wasn’t even sure if _It’s Magix_ broadcasted in Earth’s galaxy.

“It’s alright, I’m not mad,” said Stella, turning back to Bloom. “It’s just… a surprise, that’s all. I’ve never met anyone who can just forget who I am. _Everyone_ knows me from somewhere, even if they don’t say it to my face. You heard Tecna; I already have a reputation with the first-years, and classes haven’t even started yet.”

“Oh.” Bloom picked at a loose slice of pepperoni. “Must be hard for you.”

“Hmm? Whatever do you mean, darling?” asked Stella with a forced laugh. 

“Well, everyone must have an opinion of you before they even meet you,” said Bloom, gesturing broadly to the flocks of pedestrians rushing past them. Most of them ignored the Solarian heiress, but some of the younger bypassers started whispering to one another, and a few even pulled out their cellphones for a quick snapshot. “Don’t you get tired of it sometimes?”

“Moi?” Stella scoffed as she casually flipped her long blonde hair over her shoulder. “Maybe for someone without my natural grace and poise it’d be exhausting to live in the spotlight, but I must say, I do feel like I was born for it.” 

To accentuate her point, she spun on her heels, platform sandals gliding effortlessly on the pavement, so that her orange miniskirt flared perfectly around her slender hips. She lifted her head just enough so that sunlight fell directly on her face, highlighting her shimmery bronzer and pale gold eyeshadow. And when she came to halt, her hair and bangs fell neatly into place, with nary a tangle to speak of. High-end commercials couldn’t _pay_ to make their models look that good.

Stella grinned at Bloom’s stunned expression. “I’ve been practicing those twirls since I was thirteen. When you’re a princess, you have to live like you’re seconds away from appearing on the next cover of _Teen Fairy_ ,” she explained, staring pointedly at pizza grease coating Bloom’s plate, before taking a dainty sip of the sparkling water she had opted for instead.

“Speaking of which,” Stella added when she noticed a large neon clock on a nearby billboard, “nearly seventeen minutes without a single run-in. That might be a record.” 

“Seventeen minutes since we got here? But what—?”

Bloom’s question was drowned out by the sound of flashing cameras as a small mob of reporters descended on them from out of nowhere. Or at least to Bloom they seemed to come from nowhere; Stella, in contrast, didn’t look remotely surprised to see them. “Afternoon, darlings,” she said calmly, despite the camera shutters coming dangerously close to poking out her eye.

“Princess Stella,” began a reporter with a bright teal pixie cut and a sharp, toothy grin, “how’s it feel to be back in Magix for a new year at Alfea College for Fairies?”

“Well, it’s certainly a day I’ve been looking forward to—”

“After bribing Alfea into letting you return to repeat your first-year studies, how do you plan to turn things around and avoid another embarrassment for the Solarian royal family?” asked another reporter.

“We already released a statement which _clearly_ explained it was a pre-planned donation, not a—”

“Princess Galatea of Melody is attending Alfea this year,” chimed in a third voice. “Any news from her about the newly negotiated Solaria-Melody trade agreements?”

“Now, Archie, you know Alfea fairies don’t talk politics—”

With a wicked gleam in her eye, the first reporter re-joined the fray. “What about some more personal gossip, then? Any comment on the rumors that King Radius and Queen Luna are getting back together?”

Stella’s forced smile suddenly froze in place. “No comment,” she said through gritted teeth before quickly relaxing her jaw. “I’ll just pose for some pictures and let you all carry on with your day?”

Bloom watched as Stella effortlessly laughed and twirled in front of a firing squad of camera flashes before briskly sending them on their way. “Normally they pounce the second I get off the bus,” she explained to Bloom, “but I guess they weren’t expecting me until later in the afternoon.”

“They were really awful to you,” Bloom pointed out. 

Stella hesitated just a second too long before replying. “That’s just how they always are,” she said dismissively. “For more experienced princesses like me, it’s nothing, but I just hope the first-years came prepared.” She looked Bloom up and down, from her department store crop top to her outdated bell-bottom jeans, and smiled kindly. “That’s why you should be grateful you’re with me, ‘Princess Varanda,’” she said with a wink. 

“Only if you can teach me how to keep my retinas intact around that many cameras,” Bloom laughed.

“Oh, I have so much to teach you, girl!” Stella looked over at the rest of the girls just finishing their orders before lowering her voice and adding, “I know how crazy all of this must be for you, but just stick with me, okay? Just focus on having a good time at Alfea, and I promise I’ll take care of everything else.”

“Thanks, Stella,” Bloom whispered gratefully as their suitemates went to rejoin them, bringing the tantalizing smell of freshly baked pizza with them. Stella’s stomach produced a rather un-princessly growl.

Bloom glanced up and down the sidewalk before turning to Stella with a conspiratorial grin. “Looks like the coast is clear,” she said before wiping the grease from her plate and offering Stella her remaining slice.

After several seconds of weighing the risks in her head, Stella finally caved and took the plate gratefully. “You’re the best,” she whispered as she turned her back to the pedestrians and started cramming pizza down her throat. 

“Hey, we princesses need to stick together, isn’t that right?”

Too stuffed to speak, Stella simply nodded and squeezed Bloom’s hand, resolving in that moment to never let go. 

* * *

Stella had just finished putting her hair in curlers for the night when a soft knock came at her door. “Stel?”

Wrapping her pink satin robe tightly around her waist, she stood up and went to her door, where a pajama-clad Bloom was waiting with a steaming hot teacup. “Just wanted to bring this over before you went to sleep. Flora said it would help flush out any remains of the mood swing spell.”

Stella’s cheeks burned, but she quickly shook it off. “Thanks, Bloom,” she said as she accepted the teacup with a gracious smile. “I think it’s worn off now, but I’ll give this a try.” She took a tentative sip and immediately regretted it. “Tastes like buttered dirt,” she grimaced. 

Bloom had to stifle a laugh as Stella stuck out her tongue in disgust. “Flora thought you might say that, which is why I also brought sugarcubes.” Taking a fistful from her pocket, she dropped them in with a _plop plop plop_. “That any better?”

“Not really,” Stella admitted after another sip, “but I guess it’s what I deserve after everything that happened today.”

“Hey, nothing you said today was your fault. It was the spell, remember? It wasn’t true.”

Stella’s gaze fell to her fuzzy pink slippers. “Maybe... maybe some of it was,” she admitted softly.

Confused, Bloom closed the door behind her with a soft click, sat down on the only section of Stella’s bed that wasn’t covered in clothes, and patiently waited for her to continue.

“It’s just that when we were talking about your dream,” Stella began, fiddling with the hem of her robe to avoid making eye contact, “and I said I was tired of everything being about you, I… I do feel that way sometimes.”

_“Look at me, I’m the cute little girl from Earth! Look at me, I have powers! Look at me, I have no idea how to control them!”_

“Obviously I didn’t mean to say it like that,” she amended, “but exploding in the middle of Magix does get people’s attention, you know.”

Bloom frowned. “Stella, you do realize I’m not ‘exploding in the middle of Magix’ for attention, right? We could’ve been _killed_ today.”

“I know, I know, but you have to admit, ever since you got here, all any of us have been trying to do is figure out the big mystery of the Earth fairy who just showed up out of nowhere with enough Winx to blow up downtown Magix. I’m just saying, it gets exhausting sometimes.”

“That is not true, Stella! Did you forget that we helped get your ring back from the witches _twice_? And we saved Musa from getting hexed by a gang of witches? We help each other out with each other’s problems because we’re _friends_.”

“Yes, yes, it’s just… I just meant….” She took a deep, fortifying breath, just like her etiquette tutors had taught her when she was little. “We can’t always focus on decoding weird dreams or practicing anti-hex spells. There are other problems besides surviving this week’s witch attack, you know.”

Bloom crossed her arms over her blue polka dot pajamas. “Something important than figuring out what the witches are after? Like what, exactly?”

“I… I…” 

_“Any comment on the rumors that King Radius and Queen Luna are getting back together?”_

“Look, I don’t want to get into another fight today,” said Stella, throwing her hands up in surrender. “I just wanted to be honest and say what was on my mind, that’s all.”

“Well, I don’t get it,” Bloom replied. “Is this because you’re still annoyed we didn’t go with your name for the group?”

Stella’s eyes narrowed into daggers. “I’m not _that_ petty, Bloom,” she said icily. “Even though Beauty-Style-Magic-Taste-and-Flair would have been the perfect name for us, it’s your club, after all.”

“Who ever said that?” Bloom stood up and crossed the room so the two fairies were separated by a single pile of dresses lying innocently on the ground. “The Winx Club isn’t my club, Stel; it isn’t anybody’s. We don’t listen to anyone, not even _you_.”

_“I can’t be treated like some average non-princess! Or an Earth girl!”_

“Because that’s really what this is about, isn’t it?” Bloom continued. “You always expect people to listen to you because you’re the _Princess of Solaria_ , but when it comes to caring about other people’s problems, it’s just not worth your time, isn’t it?”

“Hey wait!” Stella shouted as Bloom marched toward the door. “That’s not fair, that’s not what I meant!”

Bloom’s hand hovered over the door handle. “Drink the rest of your tea, Stella,” she said finally before slamming the door behind her. “Sounds like you still need it.”

* * *

“I’m really happy you won, Stella, but if you take one more picture with that sash, I’ll set it on fire.”

Instead of getting Stella to concentrate on her Potions notes, Bloom’s comment had the opposite effect: with an aghast cry, Stella curled up on the couch and clutched the Miss Magix sash so tightly that it turned her knuckles white. “You wouldn’t dare,” she breathed.

Bloom raised an exasperated eyebrow. “Would I? Come on now,” she said, tapping the notebook with her pencil, “time to focus. Your exam is in twelve hours, Stell.”

“Fine,” Stella groaned, hauling herself upright in an attempt to pay attention. “Can I at least wear it while we study?”

Bloom held out her hand. “If you do, we’ll be here all night.”

Stella pouted but ultimately relinquished the sash. For a few minutes, all was quiet in their communal lounge save for the sound of pencils scratching against paper.

“I still don’t get what the big deal is,” said Bloom as she held up the sash, with its tacky sparkly lettering, to a nearby lamp. “You’re already a princess; you dress up and pose in front of cameras all the time. Why join a beauty contest?”

“The Miss Magix pageant is about more than just outer beauty, darling,” Stella corrected. “It’s about showing the audience your inner beauty, too. That’s what makes her a role model for young fairies and witches across the dimension.”

“Right,” said Bloom, still unconvinced, “but aren’t you already a role model on Solaria?”

“Ha, I wish. More like tabloid fodder.” Stella yawned and stretched her arms. “Look, I get it, I don’t expect you to understand the joys of pageantry, Bloom. But I’m still really grateful you girls decided to help me anyway.”

“I just want to understand why it means so much to you,” said Bloom, setting the sash aside. “Is it some kind of inter-princess competition to see who can win the most sashes?”

“It most certainly is not!” Stella shouted indignantly. “It’s much more than a game, Bloom!”

Bloom just rolled her eyes. “Come on, Stell, you said the first thing you’d do as Miss Magix would be ‘help under-privileged princesses.’ Even you have to admit how ridiculous that sounds.”

Bloom’s smug expression quickly wilted when she noticed Stella turn her head and bite down on her lip, like she was trying to hold back tears. “It’s not ridiculous to me,” she said, her quiet little voice hitting Bloom harder than a slap to the face ever could. “Do you know why Alfea isn’t swarming with paparazzi 24/7? It’s because the royal families of the seven most powerful realms in the Magical Dimension donated small fortunes to put up a barrier around the school that keeps out unwanted visitors. But for princesses going to less prestigious schools? They get bombarded with reporters every single day. It gets _bad_ , Bloom. Most of them grew up sheltered in palaces; they don’t know how to handle all the media pressure. And that’s just one issue that princesses from smaller realms have to deal with. With the right laws in place here in Magix, we could really help those girls. Or,” she added with a cold glare in Bloom’s direction, “we could just laugh and treat it as a joke. Just another bratty, spoiled princess trying to land a spot in the headlines.”

“Stella, I’m sorry, I didn’t know,” said Bloom, reaching for Stella’s hand.

Stella jerked her hand away like it burned. “No, you didn’t know,” she agreed. “You _assumed_ , just like everyone else does the second they meet me. And to think I thought you’d be any different.”

“Wait, Stella,” Bloom pleaded as she watched Stella angrily pack up her things. “Let’s just talk about this.”

“You really want to know why the Miss Magix pageant means so much to me?” she asked, standing up and staring down at Bloom haughtily. “When I get stopped on the street for pictures, nobody cares that I love Solarian sun dancing, or that my dream is to own a fashion line here in Magix. All that matters to them is where I’m from and who my parents are. But as Miss Magix, I finally get to be celebrated for _me_.”

Bloom’s eyes started watering. “Please, Stella, don’t go. I’m so sorry.”

When Stella looked back over her shoulder at the redhead Earth girl clad in sweatpants and a faded pink T-shirt, it struck her just how different the two fairies were. She had seen Bloom’s normal-sized house, met her normal Earth parents, saw a glimpse into her normal Earth life, and it was nothing like anything Stella had experienced before. And maybe… maybe that’s how things were always going to be between them. Just two roommates struggling desperately to understand each other, and failing miserably at it.

“I think I’m going to study in my room,” Stella murmured, letting her hair fall like a curtain to hide her face. “I can focus better when I’m alone.”

* * *

After putting her phone on Do Not Disturb, Stella shoved it into a dark corner of her closet, right next to old relics of her leopard print phrase, before slamming it shut and flopping onto her bed. 

“It’s fine,” she insisted, addressing the green silk canopy draped above her headboard. “I didn’t even like Sky that much anyway. I’m _glad_ he’s a good-for-nothing squire who got caught stringing me along in front of everyone at Red Fountain. I am _so_ over him.”

Stella paused, as if waiting for some kind of retaliation to descend from her ceiling, before she launched herself off the bed with a frustrated groan. Flora always kept some of those organic, low-carb biscuits lying around her room, right? If there was ever an occasion to stress eat a whole package of them, getting publicly humiliated by her ~~probably?~~ _definitely_ ex-boyfriend at one of the biggest festivals in Magix had to count.

When she softly opened the door to Flora’s room, however, she found the curtains drawn and a lump of blankets on the far bed, with tangled strands of red hair peeking through. Occasionally the lump sniffed and trembled, before falling still once more.

The composure that Stella had managed to maintain for the entire day threatened to come undone in an instant. “Hey, B,” she murmured, sitting criss-cross applesauce on her bed, “it’s okay. It’s gonna be okay. Brandon—Sky— _whoever_ he is—isn’t worth crying over, honey. No guy is.”

Bloom tentatively poked her head out, just enough for Stella to see her runny nose and puffy red eyes. “I just feel so awful, Stel.”

“I know,” she murmured while she rubbed soothing circles into Bloom’s shoulders.

“I really liked spending time with him.”

“I know.”

“I could see us being together for a long time.”

“I know.”

“I thought I could trust him.”

Stella let out a heavy sigh. “I know, Bloom. I know.”

Bloom wriggled out of her little nest of blankets and sat up, revealing her blue pajama top dotted with bunnies. “Yeah,” she sniffed, as Stella handed her a box of tissues from her nightstand, “I guess you’re the only one who really does know, huh?”

“Yes, honey,” said Stella, with a sad little smile. 

“Probably the one thing we’ll ever have in common.”

Stella chuckled weakly. “I guess so, yeah.”

Bloom watched the dust motes float within the pale sliver of sunlight that passed between her curtains, the last physical line of defense against a world of worries that threatened to come flooding in. “We’ve fought about some crazy things the past few weeks, haven’t we?”

“Yeah. Pretty stupid things, if you ask me.”

“Not all of it, though.” Bloom set down the box of tissues and took Stella’s hand. “Wanting to find out what it’s like to be a regular guy is an awful excuse for lying to us, but today, after seeing how some of those royals operate, I don’t blame him for wanting to get away. You’ve always made being a princess look so easy, even when it isn’t, and I’m sorry it took me so long to realize that.”

“No, no, don’t worry about that; it’s all in the past now. And… and I’m sorry, too. You know, for… for….”

“It’s okay, Stel, I get it,” said Bloom with a gentle pat on Stella’s knee. “Let’s just put it behind us, okay? Tonight, we’re just two ordinary girls who need some ice cream and some trashy rom-coms to heal our broken hearts.”

“Two ordinary girls,” she echoed thoughtfully. “I guess we’re not so different, when you say it like that. Except….”

Bloom cocked her head to one side. “Except what?”

Stella thought about telling Bloom that there would be no days spent recovering in bed with a pint of ice cream for her. That instead she would scroll through the flood of headlines that would greet her in the morning, that she would meet with her family’s household advisor who would detail the royal family’s official response to this news, that she would smile and hold her head up high because there was simply no other choice.

But those messages would wait, she reminded herself. The outside world could wait. Right now, she was needed here.

“Except I’m going to blow everyone away with my _clearly_ superior vocals when I take you out to that karaoke bar on the Swan Lake pier,” she finished with a playful grin that was brighter than a Solarian sunbeam.

Despite her best efforts to keep a straight face, the memory of their last foray into that bar sent Bloom toppling over from laughter into Stella’s lap. “You know,” she said once the giggles had subsided, “I’ve always looked up to you, Stel. Ever since we first met. You’re more than a friend; you’re… you’re kind of like my fairy godsister.”

With a quiet, contemplative look on her face, Stella held Bloom close and ran a gentle hand through her messy hair. “I told you I’d watch out for you at Alfea, remember?” she murmured softly. “You’re going to be alright, Bloom, I promise. Just leave everything to me.”

* * *

It hadn’t felt real to Stella before now.

She had known Bloom was a princess in _theory_ , but that didn’t really mean anything when your entire kingdom was trapped on a long-dead planet. But walking through the frozen palace on Sparx, discovering the royal treasury filled to the brim with dazzling jewels, watching Bloom take that delicate crystal circlet in her hands, the reality of it all came crashing down like an avalanche.

“It must’ve been so beautiful once,” Bloom whispered, trailing her fingers along the gold and silver engravings in the walls, now all but obscured beneath a layer of frost. “I can’t believe this is all that’s left.”

“We’ll get it back,” Stella assured her, just like a good friend would. But as she walked alongside Bloom as they made their way back to the surface, she felt the telltale heat of jealousy rise to her face. It wasn’t enough for her to have an unparalleled source of Winx, was it? No, the universe just _had_ to give her a legendary mystical kingdom, too.

Stella shook her head, dispelling those thoughts as quickly as they had arrived. Envy came second nature to her, but she was better than her instincts. Bloom wasn’t her competition, never had been. Keeper of the Dragon Flame, the lost Princess of Sparx, none of that mattered. Not when the Bloom she knew was so much more than that. An amazing artist, a bit of a fashion disaster, but most importantly, the bravest fairy she’d ever met.

“I should bring some of those jewels back to Mike and Vanessa,” said Bloom. “One necklace would be enough to pay off their entire mortgage.”

Stella hadn’t the faintest idea what a ‘mortgage’ was, except for the fact it sounded painful. “ _That’s_ what you’re thinking about?” she asked incredulously. “Darling, of _course_ you can give your parents a mort-gauge; you can give them anything you want now. That's literally the whole point of being a princess.”

“Guess it hasn’t really sunk in yet,” Bloom said with a quiet, surprised chuckle. “The whole ‘princess’ thing.” She paused for a moment. “But do you realize what this means?”

“What?”

Bloom’s face split into the widest grin Stella had ever seen. “It means I’m finally on your level, Stel.”

Stella’s heels dug into the snow and ice. “Wha… what are you _talking_ about?”

Bloom tilted her head to one side; she clearly hadn’t expected that kind of reaction. “Well, I just meant it might be cool for you to have another princess in our suite,” she explained. “You know, someone to talk to about, er, magical politics, or polishing your tiara, or whatever it is princesses talk about.”

Despite the cold wind stinging her face raw, Stella still found tears welling in her eyes. “You idiot!” she shouted, smothering Bloom with a hug tight enough to force the air from her lungs. “Do you really think any of that is actually _important_?”

Flora, Tecna, and Musa were still off exploring a collapsed hallway nearby, but Bloom was sure the echoes of Stella’s voice could still be heard for miles around. “You don’t need to get on my level, B,” she continued in a softer tone. “When we first got to Alfea, I was sure I’d have to hold your hand the entire semester. But instead, it’s always been you who’s helped me, with homework and the witches and… I guess everything, really. Even when I didn’t do a whole lot to deserve it.” Stella paused and took a deep breath. “I… I know we’re really different, and sometimes we have no idea what’s going on in each other’s lives. But even though I haven’t always been the most supportive friend in the Magical Universe, I’m so glad that I didn’t end up with the Princess of Callisto, or any other stuck-up princess, as my roommate this year.”

“Are you kidding?” Bloom laughed. “Who’s the girl who tried making me quesadillas when I was feeling homesick, or took me to my first anti-grav art show, or stayed up with me all night after the Day of the Royals? You’re the complete opposite of a stuck-up princess. Even if you don’t always say the things you mean, I know how much you care, Stel.”

Stella’s eyes widened to the point where Bloom wondered how her face could physically contain them. “Really?” she whispered.

Bloom nodded, then winced as Stella’s hug threatened to snap her spine in half. “Stella, air,” she just barely croaked out.

“Sorry, sorry,” said Stella, taking a step back. “It’s just that since my parents separated, I’ve never been good at talking to people how I really feel, you know? But I want to work on that, I really do. Well, after we get the Dragon Fire back from the witches and bring back your home planet, obviously,” she added quickly.

Bloom smiled and shook her head. “My problems aren’t the only thing that’s important. The Winx Club looks out for each other, remember? We’ll save the Magical Universe _and_ help you open up about your feelings, with enough time left over to ace our finals. ‘Cause _that’s_ how awesome we are.”

“Ooh, look at you being a leader after all,” Stella joked, elbowing Bloom in the ribs. 

“Only if you’re cool with following me through whatever the witches have in store after all this,” she said, gesturing to the mountains of solid ice and snow in the distance.

Stella grabbed hold of Bloom’s arm as together they emerged into the sunshine breaking through the clouds. “Girl, you couldn’t get rid of us if you tried.”


End file.
